Acquisitions & Partnerships

Some of the most successful B2B SaaS platforms were built, in part, using M&A. Unfortunately, some of the biggest disasters were also built this way. (I’m not naming names!)

Acquisitions

Successful acquisitions by B2B SaaS platforms require:

a thorough understanding of what additional services platform participants need

adding the right selection of the nine value propositions in the right sequence, and, of course

a disciplined, repeatable approach to post-merger integration

Successful SaaS platforms proactively seek add-on acquisitions that add value to all sides of the platform simultaneously. Unsuccessful platform acquirers (and I’ve seen many) respond to the offering memoranda that float by without a clear strategy in mind. For some clients I act as a complete business acquisition consultant:

identifying the goals of an acquisition strategy

pursuing candidates meeting those goals

assisting in due diligence, and

even helping in post-merger integration

Partnerships

Some successful B2B SaaS platforms solve the “chicken and the egg” problem, in part, by building an “ecosystem” of alliances to attract participation by key industry players. However, if you have built a partnership in the enterprise software space, you know this is quite a feat! If you are not careful you end up with a bunch of “Barney” partnerships. (Those are partnerships where both parties profess their love for each other–but not much else happens. You had to have kids in the ‘90s who watched the purple dinosaur!)

Everyone in software business consulting knows acquisitions and partnerships are major investments of time and management attention. I help clients focus on those relationships that have a chance to change the trajectory of the business and avoid “purple dinosaurs”.

Case Studies

Assisted a regional platform by identifying and acquiring two additional platforms to become a global powerhouse

Developed an acquisition strategy for a CEO seeking to sell her company to private equity investors and become a “flagship” company in the space

For an acquirer, interviewed customers of a potential acquisition target to determine loyalty and satisfaction